What's new

Charcoal?

Charcoal: What do you prefer

  • Briquettes

  • Lump

  • Art...........he's less messy!


Results are only viewable after voting.
I have never used anything other than Kingsford for grilling and using them for my WSM. What are the differences in using lump and briquettes?
 
I've never used lump charcoal, but if you don't use the matchlight charcoal the cheap Sam's charcoal lights really fast and lasts longer than any I've tried. It's also some of the cheapest in price. I love it.
 

Alacrity59

Wanting for wisdom
I think the main thing is that briquettes were invented to use up scrap wood from the production of cars . . . they originally sold through Ford dealerships. They may contain stuff you would not really choose to use in cooking. They do produce a lot of heat and pretty consistently. I have no problem with briquettes but I prefer lump so I've not used briquettes for the last 7 years or so.
 

garyg

B&B membership has its percs
The one disadvantage to lump I find is its limited availability compared to standard briquettes. Lump has some advantages though, as already pointed out it is purer (just burned wood, or normally so). I think it gets hotter but that is purely subjective. The biggest advantage is that lump leaves much less behind after burning, a fact that helps with any grill but is important for air flow in the ceramic cookers like Big Green Egg.
 
Stubbs briquettes are much better than the blue bag, it has no coal in it. I use lump for almost everything tho.
 
I'm another fan of lump, and I can find it at Lowe's, Kroger, and Walmart. Availability isn't an issue.
 
Would there be much of a difference in cooking with lump? If I use to use 1 lit chimney of briquettes would one chimney of lump be the same?
 
Lump sears better and tastes cleaner. Tougher fire to control. Can reuse leftover coals for next grilling. Very little ash or dust.
 

garyg

B&B membership has its percs
I'm another fan of lump, and I can find it at Lowe's, Kroger, and Walmart. Availability isn't an issue.

It isn't unobtainium by any means, you just can't get good stuff in every corner store or gas station Up North , that's all I meant, it is less available compared to the briquettes

As far as chimney to chimney I'd say about they are about the same, bear in mind that lump is by its nature irregular so you get some big 'uns & some chips in even the best stuff's bags
 
I saw Costco carries some now. im all about less ash though so ill give it a try when i run through my stock of Kingsford. I used about 17 pounds of briquettes for a couple of butts and there was a massive pile of dust at the bottom, though it wasn't tough to clean it was still surprising how much ash it leaves behind.
 
Last edited:
Stubbs briquettes are much better than the blue bag, it has no coal in it. I use lump for almost everything tho.

How would you compare lump to briquettes in length of cooking? Will a tray full of lump burn as long as briquettes?
 
I use briquets for the everyday use, lump for when I need the high heat(flank steak, tuna, most steaks), and Natural wood for smoking meats. I usually start with a briquet starter and then add the wood chunks as needed. Alot easier to control my temp with using this method as well. I usually have to add another dose of briquets about 5 hours in but only a half chimney worth.
 
Yeah, the lump burns hotter and quicker than the briquettes. I like lump better as a grilling type of option and briquettes for smoking, but it's all just personal opinion. I've smoked with lump with no problem.

I have almost always used the regular Kingsford for smoking, but really started getting tired of all the ash. Kingsford is notorious for large amounts of ash. They have a competition briquette which is supposed to burn hotter and produce less ash, but I haven't tried it yet.

This year I've been using Trader Joe's charcoal. No problems with it and very little ash. I don't know where they source it from, and it may change next year, not to mention they don't carry it year 'round. I think a few years ago they were also selling lump instead of briquettes, but now it seems to be briquettes. I guess they just go with whatever supplier they can get the best deal from that year.
 

The Count of Merkur Cristo

B&B's Emperor of Emojis
For me...I've never used lump, but most, if not all the time I use Kingsford with soaked Apple wood chips. :thumbup:

Christopher
proxy.php
"Grills just wanna have fun". Author Unknown
 
I have almost always used the regular Kingsford for smoking, but really started getting tired of all the ash. Kingsford is notorious for large amounts of ash. They have a competition briquette which is supposed to burn hotter and produce less ash, but I haven't tried it yet.

Those were my first briquettes and I liked them but it didn't seem like they burned as long as the blue bag. They did produce less ash but nothing to write home about.
 
Top Bottom